II Hebrews 15 – How You Can See God

Because the writer of Hebrews is writing to a predominantly Jewish audience, many of his references, based on laws, rituals and customs of the Jews, are difficult for the current Gentile Christian to understand. This makes the reader simply read the surface meaning in many passages which have very deep and far-reaching implications.This 10th chapter is a good example. Let us look closely and find the wonderful truths hidden in the words we read.

First, it is quite evident that he is contrasting the sacrifice of Jesus with the animal sacrifices which were offered each year by the priests under the old law. We can speculate about the reason that God required blood sacrifice for sin, but the true reason is hidden in the eternal purposes and ways of God, not fathomable by the limited mind of man. We can only know that God says, “Without the shedding of blood there can be no remission”.

This emphasizes the fact that God’s will cannot be examined by the logical processes of scholars, nor can it be tested in the laboratories of science. I am sure this is the reason so many of the scholars and professors in our great universities are agnostics or atheists. Theythink that everything must have a logical conclusion, or be explained by the orderly processes of scientific research. However, God did not reveal Himself to the rich, powerful or the intellectual elite. He wanted the humblest and lowliest to believe on Him, understand His message of hope and love, and respond in humble faith to his Creator and Father. Paul says in one place, “Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools”. In other words, by denying what they could not logically prove, they denied the existence of One who could and did put in place all things beyond their understanding . One good example is “life”. Our great scientists have found ways to cure its ills and even lengthen its days, but they cannot create it, nor can they logically explain how it comes to be.

But here in this chapter, the writer says that Jesus was given a body in order for Him to shed His blood as a sacrifice for our sins and to make us “perfect”. Let me first emphasize again that Jesus became wholly human. He was not a spiritual being walking around in a human body. He became totally man. But, as a man, He did what no other man has ever done. He perfectly lived up to the will of the Father. That is why He could say to His disciples, “If you have seen Me you have seen the Father”. I want to examine that statement and try to understand all of its implications.

Obviously Jesus did not mean that He looked like His Father. The eternal God does not have human eyes to see with, nor human ears to listen with. So what did Jesus mean when He used the word “see”? I believe if you will stop and think for a moment, you will realize that we use the word “see” in two ways. We use it to mean look at with the eye. But we also use it of understanding when we say, “Oh yes, I see what you mean.” This is not something we do with our five physical senses. It is something we do with our brain, or with our spiritual senses. So Jesus was saying that those who perceived His desire to please His Father, His love for all mankind, His self-sacrificing lifeand His longing for all men to believe on Him and be saved, then they would see, i.e., come to know and understand God.

The sacrifice of Jesus was to make us “perfect”. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “Be ye perfect, even as your Heavenly Father is perfect”. This, of course, is something impossible for any man to do. So, why would Jesus tell us to do something impossible? Because we can accomplish perfection by accepting Him and His sacrifice and making Him, by our total faith in Him, the Lord of our life. Then, John tells us, His blood “cleanses us of all unrighteousness”. That is how you can be perfect and able to be an eternal companion to and member of the Family of God.